A New Guide To Choosing The Right Vitamin Supplement: Report From Harvard Medica

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A New Guide To Choosing The Right Vitamin Supplement: Report From

Harvard Medical School Separates The Essentials From The Gimmicks

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=63508

How do you choose a safe and healthy multivitamin? " Vitamins and

Minerals: What You Need to Know, " a new report from Harvard Medical

School, offers the following advice.

-- Look for a seal of approval. Choose products that bear the U.S

Pharmacopeia Dietary Supplement Verification Program (USP-DSVP)

mark, which indicates that the manufacturer has complied with

certain standards.

-- Consider safe levels. All dietary supplements have a " Supplement

Facts " label that lists the percentage of the daily value (DV) of

each nutrient per serving, as well as the actual amount of each.

Multivitamin and multimineral supplements shouldn't exceed 150% of

the DV for any nutrient. In fact, for trace minerals, such as iron,

fluoride, and zinc, it's safest not to exceed the DV at all.

-- Ignore marketing gimmicks. It doesn't matter whether vitamin C is

derived from organic rose hips or synthesized in large batches in a

laboratory; your body will use the resulting product similarly.

Also, if you're not sensitive to specific ingredients, such as

wheat, rice, or lactose, there's no need to pay more for allergen-

free products.

-- Don't pay more for unproven extras. There is virtually no

evidence that herbs and other nonvitamin ingredients added to

supplements -- such as echinacea, bioflavonoids, and ubiquinone

(coenzyme Q10) -- are essential for your health.

-- Beware of potentially dangerous interactions. Pay attention to

warnings on the label, and tell your doctor and pharmacist what

supplements you take.

" Vitamins and Minerals: What you Need to Know " is a 48-page report

edited by Meier J. Stampfer, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology

and Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health.

Also included in the report:

-- detailed explanations of each vitamin's and mineral's

physiological effects

-- the latest recommendations on each vitamin and mineral

-- current research on how specific vitamins and minerals affect

health

-- how to create a healthy and balanced diet

Harvard Health Publications

http://www.health.harvard.edu/